Day 5 and Day 6

I never posted about my first class at Head Quarters: the 10AM on Saturday the 2/6/10.

Rajashree, Bikram's wife, taught the class. It was an incredible honor to be taking her class. Her class was pretty crowded. I would say close to 100 people but everyone had a comfortable space around them. The studio is HUGE. During the first set of balancing stick pose, Bikram walked in. Everything sort of went into slow motion. It was really cool, he hopped up on the podium and Rajashree asked him if he wanted to teach. He said no. He said "hi" to all of the regulars at the studio, asked how their families were; he was very cordial and very charming. For the second side of the first set, he had us hold it for what seemed like forever... I thought my standing leg was going to fall off. And after that, he walked out, and that was it. It was cool to see him in the flesh, to be in the same room as the creator of the series that has changed my life. The rest of class was good. I was really tight. I think because I was sitting down for just about the whole day on Friday. From the car, to the plane, to the plane to the car, car to the restaurant, restaurant to the car, car to the hotel, and then to bed. The studio wasn't that hot, but I did generate a lot of heat towards the end of class. I was pouring sweat. I think I was just working really hard because it was my first class at Head Quarters and on top of it all, Rajashree was teaching. Great experience.

Day 6, 2/7/10

I started out the day with a 10AM class. An older woman named Carolyn was teaching. I am assuming she's a senior teacher. It was a great class. Before class, I did some wall walks down the back wall. It caught the attention of the people who were sitting back there and they asked me if I was competing. When I said that I was, a whole crowd congregated and they all introduced themselves to me. One woman, who practiced next to me yesterday, said that she enjoyed practicing next to me because I was very still and had a great practice. They asked me where I was from, and I said, "Maryland." I asked them if this (head quarters) was their home studio. When they answered, "yes," I explained to them how it's neat that to them, this just their home studio-- their place to practice. While to me, it is the Mecca of the yoga world. I asked them who was teaching, they said "Carolyn... you'll like her class." Not soon after, she walked in the door. An older woman, maybe late 60s, early 70s, but I could be wrong. (I am fascinated with age, but that's another story, those of you who know me well, know I love older women, i.e.- Stevie Nicks, Madonna, Deborah Harry, Patti Smith.... the older the better) But anyway, she was very funny, very witty. She was very touchy, however, about people coming in late. And because the studio is so big, some people will come in and walk up towards the front, which she did NOT like. I was chuckling to myself because people kept coming in after breathing, and in the middle of the dialogue she would burst out, "YOU, NO, BACK, GET BACK, BACK, BACK OF THE ROOM." Then, after about 6 people walked in during the first set of breathing, she ended it abruptly. And said that she wanted to explain some "yoga ettiquette" to everyone. She went on to tell us that if we come in late, we stand in the back and wait till an appropriate time to move up front to put our mat down. We then began to start the second set when someone else walked in. She stopped the class and said "find your spot, we'll wait." It sounds a little harsh the way I'm typing it, but it was actually pretty funny. She gave me good corrections:

During standing head-to-knee, she told me to kick my kicking-leg more forward, which brought my hip more forward, thus distributing the weight on my standing more evenly so that I wouldn't be leaning back into my heel-- The first person to give me that correction was Lynne. I had never even gotten that correction until I came to Bikram Yoga Hampden. And now what? I have a senior teacher giving me the same correction... I truly am blessed with great teachers--

Later, she flicked my elbows with her fingers during balancing stick until I locked them out. When I did lock them out I could tell a difference, a lot more stretching up.

~One tidbit that surprised me: A lot of people kept going in and out of class. It was shocking because it was Head Quarters. And this didn't just happen during Carolyn's class, it happened in Rajashree's too. People just leaving at random times. Carolyn even said at one time, ".... seems there's a party in the bathroom, if you're attending make sure to be back by the spine strengthening series..." I kept thinking to myself, as people were leaving, that these yogis don't even know what 'hot' is! Spend one day in my home studio, and certain teachers (ehem) will have you running out on fire!!! I find that at this studio, I get hotter as the class progresses. The temperature of the room is pretty constant, but I feel that it's my body generates a lot of heat as the class proceeds.

After class, I did some wall-walks down the back wall, then went and showered up and headed to Venice Beach with my parents. Which I will have to talk about in another post, because that was very, very interesting but very great as well.

I returned to Head Quarters at 3:50PM for the 4:30PM class. It wasn't a crowded class, I suppose because it was Superbowl Sunday (which by the way I am very happy for the Saints). A girl named Samantha was teaching. My guess is that she was probably in her late twenties. It was my second class of the day, so my body was nice and malleable, and I used that to my advantage. I locked my leg out in standing bow and she noticed. She said, "you are probably the 3rd guy I've ever seen lock their leg out in standing bow." I know there are many more men who can do that, but still, it was a very flattering comment none-the-less. She then asked me where I was from, I said "Bikram Yoga Hampden, Maryland" and she invited me up onto Bikram's podium to demonstrate standing bow for the whole class.... Now, let me say that again:

She invited me up onto Bikram's podium to demonstrate standing bow for the whole class.

I was extremely honored. While Bikram was not in the class, nor was Rajashree, still, being on the same podium that he teaches from, and to be asked to demonstrate a posture at the World Head Quarters of Bikram Yoga is an EXTREME honor and I was extremely humbled, especially when I got a round of applause from the home-students of the studio-- One of the proudest moments of my yoga career so far. She asked me how old I was, she guessed early 20s. When I told her 19, she said hopes were high for me and that I had a lot in my "long yoga career" ahead of me to look forward to. For the rest of class she referred to me as A.J. and during balancing stick she even said, "You are stretching forward and stretching backwards... Imagine I am pulling your arms toward the mirror and A.J. is pulling your leg toward the back wall..." Pretty cool, I gotta say. Pretty cool.

I also went up into the full expression of locust pose, where she stopped the class and had them look at me as I put my feet onto my head for scorpion pose. I got another round of applause-- again, I was so humbled.

Every posture that is executed is a demonstration of the eminent knowledge of my teachers and the unbounded faith they have placed in me every day. I say this a lot, but I still do not say it enough. Thank you all, students as well, for believing in me.

Namaste.